Markets Archives - Page 665 of 782

GE Plans to Hire 5,000 Veterans

One of the biggest conglomerates in the United States, General Electric, has announced plans to hire 5,000 veterans over the next five years. As part of the plan, the company will also partner with the United States Chamber of Commerce to sponsor over 400 job fairs in 2012 for veterans as part of the ‘Hiring our Heroes’ initiative.

General Electric CEO Jeffery Immelt, who is also the head of President Barack Obama’s 27-member jobs council, made the announcements as part of a four-day conference on topics such as manufacturing and job creation in America.

China To Double Military Budget By 2015

China is set to double its defence budget to more than $238 billion a year by 2015, claimed a report by the Financial Times on Monday, as Beijing attempts to close its military gap with the US amidst growing tensions in Asia.

Want To Find Love In China? Get A Government Job.

Being a civil servant is the most desirable profession for males among single women in China, claimed a survey done by Chinese dating website zhenai.com on Monday, with the job of high school teacher being the most popular in the reverse scenario.

Key Economic News To Watch This Week: Feb. 13

A quick preview of the key economic events for the upcoming week:

The drama continues for Greece: In a crucial parliamentary vote, Greek lawmakers passed another painful austerity bill to avoid default, while protestors took to the streets and tore the capital city apart. Despite the high social tensions, global markets across Asia and Australia traded in positive territory on optimism of Athens’ commitment to economic reforms.

Monday, February 13

Can Capitalism Outlive Its Treacherous Impostor? : Saifedean Ammous & Edmund Phelps

The modern “capitalist system” cannot be considered as true capitalism. Rather, this corrupted version is more akin to corporatism, which chokes off the dynamism that makes for engaging work, faster economic growth, and greater opportunity and inclusiveness. The time though could be right for capitalism to once again carry its true meaning, rather than the one attributed to it by corporatists seeking to hide behind it and socialists wanting to vilify it.

Obama To Unveil Budget Plans: $901B Deficit and Tax Hike in Store

United States President Barack Obama is set to unveil his 2013 budget plans today, with predictions of a $1.3 trillion deficit in 2012 and a $901 billion deficit in 2013. In addition, the President is expected to press forward with his call for higher taxes, especially for the high-income brackets.

However, in the eyes of Republicans, Obama’s budget will be dead on arrival in Congress. Republicans argue that his budget is designed to aid his re-election campaign this November, rather than tackle the United States’ twin debt and deficit problem.

Chinese Banks Ordered To Extend $1.7 Trillion In Loans To Local Governments

The Chinese government has orders its banks to extend the maturity dates for loans made by provincial and city authorities, said the Financial Times on Sunday, after local governments were saddled with more than $1.7 trillion in debt from new projects during the global financial crisis.

In Times of Austerity, Italy’s Ministers Are Forced To Return Gifts

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti has a tough job cleaning up after the disgraced Silvio Berlusconi. From tough pension reforms to cracking down on tax evaders, Monti is now insisting that his ministers cut back on entertainment expenses and return gifts that cost more than 150 euros.

78% of Americans Say Owning This Is Important To Them. What Is It?

What can Americans not live without? A car? A smartphone? Credit cards? Lake Research Partners found out via a survey, and the answer may be a little surprise for some.

A recent poll conducted on behalf of the National Association of Home Builders has found that a huge majority of Americans believe in investing in homeownership, with over 78 percent of all respondents agreeing, and 43 percent strongly agreeing.

Euro-oddity – The ECB’s Peculiar Stance On Greece’s Debt: Joseph Stiglitz

There are several explanations for the ECB’s insistence on a “voluntary” restructuring of Greece’s sovereign debt, none of which speaks well for the institution. Indeed, as we have seen elsewhere, institutions that are not democratically accountable tend to be captured by special interests.